Man Bitten by Alligator During Morning Stroll Near Florida Hotel

According to the victim of the gator's attack, he mistook the deadly reptile for a "dog with long leash".

A man was bitten by a seven-foot-long alligator during an early-morning stroll at Warm Mineral Springs Motel in Sarasota County in Florida earlier this week.

According to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office, quoted by local media, while the man was walking, he saw a dark figure moving along the bushes. As he thought it was a dog on a long leash, he did not step away, and the alligator bit his leg, ripping out a piece of his limb.

The victim was helped by an unnamed man before he was taken to a local hospital where he received treatment for non-life threatening injuries.

According to Adam Brown, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the alligator was captured and "transferred alive to Townsend Farms”. The state of Florida currently has over 1.3 million alligators, the commission said, adding that the number of unprovoked attacks has increased.